Written questions by Akehurst.

What (a) insurance requirements and (b) enforcement mechanisms are in place for (a) private hire and (b) delivery drivers.

All drivers must have the correct insurance cover for the purpose they are using their vehicle for, and the police may check this when stopping a vehicle. The Government takes uninsured driving seriously and tackles this through Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE), a scheme where the Motor Insurers’ Bureau and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency collaborate to identify uninsured drivers; police enforcement on the road and through Operation Tutelage.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information his Department holds on whether drones have been used by the military regime against civilians in Myanmar.

We continue to monitor the escalation of the conflict in Myanmar closely, including the use of drones by the Myanmar military. The UK strongly condemns the military's use of airstrikes on civilians and civilian infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, and places of worship. The UK is exploring a range of measures to disrupt the military's ability to use air capabilities to target civilians. In October 2024, the UK announced sanctions targeting companies involved in the procurement of aviation fuel and equipment for the Myanmar Armed Forces.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Biggest investment into hospices in a generation, dated 19 December 2024, how much of the £100 million funding will be allocated to the North East and North Cumbria integrated care board area.

We are working closely, and at pace, with NHS England on this once in a generation funding boost. We will set out the details of the funding allocation and dissemination in the coming weeks.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of planned East Coast Main Line timetable change in December 2025 on local rail services in (a) County Durham and (b) the North East.

An assessment suggested Chester-le-Street calls on Trans Pennine Express be increased to hourly services, which have now been implemented. As well as the LNER London to Newcastle trains be increased from two trains per hour to three trains per hour, now scheduled to start from December 2025. Darlington should retain its two trains per hour to London by LNER and Durham should retain its one train per hour to London by LNER, both of which have been confirmed. Other benefits to the North-east identified for introduction include more local trains north of Newcastle. Network Rail is modelling the timetable to enable industry to focus on actions to ensure the timetable can be delivered reliably.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of trends in levels of retail and commercial units that are vacant in (a) Chester-le-Street, (b) Stanley and (c) England.

This government is committed to revitalise town centres and stimulate economic growth by addressing persistent vacancy rates in town centres like Chester-le-Street and Stanley. High Street Rental Auctions, which came into effect in December 2024, give local authorities in England the power to auction the lease of commercial high street property that has been vacant for longer than 12 months in a 24-month period.The government also plans to introduce a new ‘right to buy’ for valued community assets through the English Devolution Bill. This will allow local communities to revitalise important assets, such as empty shops, pubs and community spaces, which can help to eliminate the impact of vacant premises.Using these powers, and working in partnership with the North East Combined Authority and Durham County Council, will help to deliver a Local Growth Plan, supporting town centres in the North East by driving inclusive economic growth.

Whether his Department plans to introduce (a) mandatory training and (b) policies on surgical fires within all NHS hospital settings.

In 2023, the Centre for Perioperative Care published revised National Safety Standards for Invasive Procedures (NatSSIPs2). The standards were designed to reduce misunderstandings or errors, and to improve team cohesion. The NatSSIPs2 include a requiremen...

What estimate she has made of the number of young people out of work, education and training in North Durham constituency.

We published new analysis alongside the Get Britain Working White Paper which shows that there are 45,000 young people out of work, education and training across the North East.Those young people are being failed.The data is not robust enough to be broken...

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that patients requiring radiotherapy start their treatment with 31 days of a doctor deciding on their treatment plan.

We understand that cancer patients are waiting longer than they should for the care they need, and we are taking action to address this. The Government is committed to improving cancer care and reducing waiting times for treatment, including for radiother...

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the NHS long-term health plan complements the National Cancer Strategy in the context of the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of (i) radiographer

The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver three big shifts in the focus of healthcare, from hospital to community, analogue to digital, and sickness to prevention.The Department will also refresh the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan to fit the transformed health s...

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of legal aid provision in cases relating to disputes in the benefits system.

This Government inherited a legal aid system facing significant challenges. The Ministry of Justice has recently undertaken a lengthy, evidence-based, and wholesale review of the operation of civil legal aid across all eleven categories of civil legal aid...

If he will take steps with local partners to ensure the availability of (a) parenting and (b) other programmes to improve the mental health of (i) infants, (ii) children and (iii) young people ment

The Government has a bold new ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever. Launched in August 2022, the three-year Family Hubs and Start for Life programme provides approximately £300 million to 75 local authorities in England with high l...

How many (a) Surface to Air Missile Centre command and control systems, (b) Giraffe Agile Multibeam radars and (c) Land Ceptor launcher and missile systems comprising the Sky Sabre system are deployed in (i) the

We do not routinely disclose the locations or numbers of these platforms in the interests of security and operational effectiveness.

How much his Department has spent on integrated air and missile defence in each financial year since 2010.

Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD) is cross-government, multi-layered approach, utilising a wide range of advanced capabilities alongside our Allies as an international effort. There has been wide-ranging investment across the full range of IAMD ca...

How much funding has been allocated to the European Long-range Strike Approach programme.

The European Long-Range Strike Approach (ELSA) is a multinational framework. Participating nations will consider capability cooperation programmes under the ELSA framework, to be funded on a case-by-case basis. The outcomes of the Strategic Defence Review...

What his (a) planned timetable and (b) key milestones for success are for the DIAMOND initiative.

In October the UK signed a letter of intent on DIAMOND (Delivering Integrated Air and Missile Operational Networked Defences) alongside six Allies: France, Germany, Latvia, Norway, Poland and Sweden. We are working with these countries to agree the timeta...

When he expects Challenger 3 to be deployed to Estonia.

As announced by the Secretary of State for Defence, the British Army will deploy Challenger 3 tanks to NATO’s eastern border along with armoured vehicles in future years. However, details relating to the fielding plan for Challenger 3 are yet to be confir...

What progress has been made on establishing an integrated air and missile defence system for the UK.

Air and missile defence is a 24/7, cross-Government and international effort. We take a layered approach to air and missile defence deploying a wide range of advanced capabilities alongside our Allies. Without pre-determining the outcome of the Strategic ...

How much funding his Department has (a) allocated to and (b) spent on the air protection laser self-protection system.

Defence is working with several industry partners to generate a UK Defensive Aids Suite in order to provide Air Platform Protection for all three services. Under the banner of Team Pellonia, working with Thales, Leonardo, and Chemring Countermeasures, Air...

What steps she has taken to disrupt the activity of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps in the UK.

We do not routinely comment on the detail of operational matters or specific threats. But national security is the first duty of any government, and we take any malicious activity that might pose a significant threat to our security and public safety extr...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help increase levels of humanitarian aid into Myanmar.

Since the coup in February 2021, the UK has provided more than £150 million for life-saving humanitarian assistance, healthcare, education and support for civil society and local communities in Myanmar. Most recently, the UK Government provided £1.3 milli...